2016 Facebook Updates

Facebook changes that are getting businesses excited!

This year Facebook is set to carry out some major updates. The way we interact with the posts in our Newsfeed is about to change. Those of you who were in favour of a sparkly new ‘Dislike’ button will be pleased to know that your wish has been somewhat granted, to a certain extent…

Now don’t get too excited, there’s isn’t a Dislike button as Facebook have said this would have too much of a negative effect on interaction, but they have opted for something a little more visual and emotional with their range of new smilies.

Happy, Sad, Love, Angry, Wow

This week all us Facebook users have the option to express our feelings on the posts in our Newsfeeds. This means that instead of ‘Liking’ that post about Geraldine’s big Lottery win, you’ll be able to love it instead, by clicking on the little love heart. Similarly, if you’re sad about James’ beloved car failing its MOT, you’ll be able to select the sad face so that James knows you share his emotion. You’ll be able to do this with the happy, angry and wow faces, too.

This new feature is called Facebook ‘Reactions’ and for some users, these changes have already happened; you may have noticed the little emojis popping up above the like button already. To jump on the Reaction’s party bus you just need to press and hold the like button on your hand-held device (mobile phone or tablet) or hover over the like button on your laptop and the expressive little emojis will pop up ready for you to select the most relevant face.

Wait, there’s more!

It’s all about quality, not quantity these days. Facebook are continuing to make changes to their algorithms which affect the way in which your posts are shared with the wider world. Facebook is aiming to make the Newsfeed experience as relevant as possible through customer feedback and research, which could affect your engagement in either a positive or a negative way.

Essentially, Facebook have collected data and feedback from a cross section of people and used it to organise users’ Newsfeeds by what they’re likely to be interested in. So what does this mean for businesses struggling to be noticed in the big wide world of Facebook? From now on, the quality of what you post, the content it possesses and even the consistency of your posts can affect how highly you feature in your audience’s Newsfeed.

Ask yourself: is it compelling?

The aim of these changes is to ensure that Facebook users are surrounded by things they’re interested in and that might be of use to them, rather than the typical ‘Buy me’ or ‘Like and share’ posts. You now need to consider what impact the media you’re posting out will have on your intended audience; whether they will be compelled to engage with you (by liking, commenting or sharing your post) or if they will be inclined to click through to your page and either view other posts or ultimately purchase from you.

By carefully considering what, when and how you post on social media, you can take great advantage of these new changes and help your business to continue to grow. To find out how Jigsaw Communications could help you and your business flourish on social media and beyond, contact us today.